The Republicans’ Continuing Struggle to Attract the Chick Vote

Republicans know they’ve got to do a better job of “wooing” female voters. Their prescription, of course, is completely inadequate: don’t change the policies, just stop saying really stupid shit. And even that is beyond their capabilities; almost every day, some male Republican officeholder or party official somewhere says something colossally ignorant about women. They can’t help themselves.

Our latest entry in this sad little ledger is from the city of Barre, where local Democrats are choosing nominees to serve out the remaining term of the departing State Rep. Tess Taylor. (Reminder: the local party chooses up to three nominees and forwards the names to the Governor, who can choose any of the three or anyone else, for that matter.)

As reported in the Mitchell Family Organ (North) — behind a paywall, as usual — the Dems’ clear choice was Tommy Walz, chair of the Barre Democrats. There seems to be only one problem: he’d be a man replacing a woman, and this raised some concerns.

So the Barre City Democratic Committee added two women to their list of three, Gina Galfetti and HIllary Montgomery.

Fast forward to The Mouth That Roared, Barre’s Republican Mayor Thom Lauzon, who wrote a letter to the Governor urging the appointment of Walz. And, when asked about the idea of giving preference to a woman, he scoffed:

“What’s next? Are we going to replace a brunette with a brunette? That’s just silly.”

Open mouth, insert foot.

No, Mr. Mayor, we won’t be considering hair color in present or future nominations. Nor will we insist that you be succeeded as Mayor by a real estate investor with a Napoleon complex and temper-control issues.

And by cavalierly dismissing the notion that gender is a factor worthy of consideration, Thom Lauzon becomes the latest Republican male who just can’t help himself. It’s not in the same league as Todd Akin’s “legitimate rape” or Mike Huckabee’s “helpless without Uncle Sugar”, but it’s yet another sign of something deeply wrong, and deeply sexist, about the 21st Century Republican brain.